Dire Straits "Walk of Life"

My friend John had a grandmother named Florence or "Flo" as he called her. Flo lived with John and his mother in a two-story house about a block from where I lived. I didn't know much about Flo other than she wore bell-bottom pants and she would usually just put the phone down and forget to tell John whenever I called their house. One other thing about Flo -- she usually walked around and mumbled "Whoo. Whoo wee." I don't know why, but she did. Once John got his driver's license, he and I would cruise the streets of Northwest Indiana listening to the radio. When Dire Straits' "Walk of Life" came on the radio, John shared that he called it the "Flo Song" since the song's hook contained the lyrics "Whoo-hoo".

Billy Ray Cyrus "Achy Breaky Heart"

My family became one of the first accidental wedding crashers back in the late-1980s. Whenever our family of four ventured out to eat, it usually meant we went to one of three familiar Northwest Indiana places: either a diner named Michaels or Zantes or an all-you-can-eat pizza & buffet called Shakey's. These were my Dad's favorite places and (today) I assume they were also the least expensive places.

During one stormy Saturday night, Dad proudly announced we would be trying a new place: D.C.'s Country Junction in Lowell, Indiana. My Mom heard about the place (known for their line dancing) and somehow talked Dad into going. While my Dad drove our family's Buick Skylark toward Lowell, my brother and I nervously watched the lightning fill in the night sky. After seeing a tornado in an old black-and-white movie at my Grandmother's house, the two of us were fascinated (and terrified) of severe thunderstorms. This particular nasty summer thunderstorm safely moved through the area during our 30-minute commute and left the air feeling more humid after we finally stepped out of the car at D.C.'s crowded parking lot.

As the four of us stood at the entrance awaiting the host to seat us, I immediately noticed the action on the dance floor as folks stomped their feet and did a form of dancing that was completely unfamiliar to me. My parents never exposed us to Country Music and, thus, line dancing.

Growing impatient (and hungry), Dad finally approached a passing staff member. The young bus boy motioned for us to sit wherever we chose...so we did. We moved to a booth close enough to the dance floor and buffet. After a few more minutes of waiting, my dad finally flagged the same bus boy and inquired about our waitress. The bus boy told us to just grab a plate and head to the buffet; this news delighted me as an abundance of fried chicken sat within a few feet of us. At this point, my Mom whispered something into my Dad's ear which caused a moment of panic between my parents.

My Dad waved over the bus boy a third time and the two struck up another conversation. When it ended, my Dad signaled to us that we had to leave. Wait, what? The thought of leaving without eating while the smell of crispy fried chicken danced in my brain wasn't sitting well with me. My parents hurried us to the car where Dad finally revealed what really happened inside D.C.'s Country Junction. His nervousness morphed into laughter as my Dad admitted that D.C.'s was actually closed that night for a private wedding reception! The poor busboy thought we were part of the wedding. We wound up eating at some nearby diner and, from that day forward, my Dad never veered outside his comfort zone of Michael's, Zante's or Shakey's Restaurants. 

Bruce Hornsby "Walk in the Sun"

I graduated from high school during the summer of 1995 and spent many late nights cruising around Northwest Indiana with my small but solid group of friends who would soon be heading to different colleges than me. I planned to spend my freshman year of college locally at Indiana University Northwest whereas my friends were headed to Ball State, Purdue or Indiana University in Bloomington. Since I didn't have a curfew, I tried to make the most of late nights that year and usually stayed up until the sun started to rise. My older brother worked for United Airlines that year and his alarm would sound around at the ripe time of 3:45am. One particular early morning, I remember him passing me on his walk to the bathroom while muttering, "You're still up and I'm getting up for work...what's wrong with this picture?" That unusually hot summer featured hits from TLC, Hootie & The Blowfish and Green Day on the radio, but I also remember many late nights in the car when I would come across Bruce Hornsby's "Walk in the Sun". The jazzy soft rock tune played on many Adult Contemporary radio stations during that hot summer and, like many of my high school friends, disappeared in the autumn...

Herb Alpert featuring Janet Jackson & Lisa Keith - "Diamonds"

Both of my parents worked during in the 1980s, so we spent a lot of time with our aunt Marybeth.  She was our favorite aunt as she always took us to the beach, arcade, or McDonalds. Since Marybeth was only in her young twenties, she had the time, energy and stamina to put up with me, my brother, and sometimes my other cousins Johnny and Allison. During that time, Marybeth always made mix tapes and would play them in her Pontiac Firebird while driving around Northwest Indiana. If I had a dollar for every stupid minute fact that has lodged itself into my brain, I'd be a rich man...but, I remember many of MB's Mixes contained the song "Diamonds" from Herb Alpert. Since Alpert played the trumpet, he utilized Janet Jackson and Lisa Keith for vocals in "Diamonds". The song climbed to #1 on numerous charts in 1987 including #5 on the Hot 100.        

The Thompson Twins "Doctor Doctor!"

My earliest memories of listening to the radio start around 1984 when B-96 provided the soundtrack to pool parties at our quaint Northwest Indiana home.  My brother and neighbor actually started our own band called "The Thompson Twins" because this song was all over the radio that year.  Our version of the band never lasted beyond one practice session, but the real Twins lasted much longer.  I kick off "Growing Up Adult Contemporary" with this hit from a the British duo that was neither Thompsons nor twins.